Toyota Motor Corp. and Mazda Motor Corp. announced they will spend $1.6 billion to jointly build a manufacturing plant in the U.S. that will be adaptable to the needs of the future.
Toyota Motor North America is based in a new headquarters campus in Plano, and the company already has a manufacturing facility in San Antonio.
The new plant would create up to 4,000 jobs, the companies said.
The partnership between Japanese automakers Toyota and Mazda is expected to lead the companies to jointly develop technologies for “competitive electric vehicles,” connected vehicle technology, and advanced safety technologies, Toyota said in a release.
“This is a partnership in which those who are passionate about cars will work together to make ever-better cars.”
Akio Toyoda
“The greatest fruit of our partnership with Mazda is that we have found a new partner who truly loves cars. It has also sparked Toyota’s competitive spirit, increasing our sense of not wanting to be bested by Mazda,” Toyota President Akio Toyoda said in a release. “This is a partnership in which those who are passionate about cars will work together to make ever-better cars. It is also the realization of our desire to never let cars become commodities.”
The announcement reveals a shift in the production strategy for Toyota.
Previously, Toyota said it would produce the cars at a plant in the state of Guanajuato in Mexico, but said it now will move production of the Tacoma mid-size pickup to the Mexico facility, USA Today reported.
The proposed factory will be able to roll out 300,000 vehicles a year, and will produce Toyota’s popular Corollas models as well as a new Mazda crossover vehicle to be sold in the North American market.
The plant is expected to be operational by 2021, but the companies didn’t announce where it will be built. Toyota already builds Corollas at a plant in Mississippi, and the Associated Press reported that a new factory could be near that factory to ease supply chain issues.
Sales of small cars are down because of lower gasoline prices, according to the Associated Press, so Toyota said the new plant will be innovative enough to produce other types of vehicles, based on what the economy is doing when the plant opens.
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